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COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio State University is among 33
colleges and universities that have joined forces to create a job-posting
service that helps dual-career couples find positions in academia.

Representatives from participating institutions in Ohio,
western Pennsylvania and West Virginia are meeting today (5/16) at Ohio State
to formally launch the cooperative service, which will also help the schools
land the best candidates.

The consortium addresses a common problem in higher
education – the ability of dual-career couples to find employment at the same
or nearby institutions. The new tri-state regional section of the national
Higher Education Recruitment Consortium (HERC), based at Case Western Reserve
University, provides just that: a “one-stop shopping” resource listing job
openings within a reasonable commuting distance of one another.

These networks emphasize added diversity within the higher
education applicant pool and are designed to facilitate dual-career hiring
among members. However, the jobs website is open to anyone seeking employment
in the region. In addition to higher education jobs, the site offers
information about other professional career opportunities.

More than a third of university faculty nationally have a
spouse or partner who also works in academia. Another 36 percent have a partner
employed outside of higher education.

“Our goal is to improve not only the job-search process for
higher-education applicants in this part of the country, but to enhance the
quality and diversity of people looking for these opportunities,” said Jennifer
Heckscher, the tri-state HERC Advisory Board chair and program manager for Ohio
State’s Gender
Initiatives in STEMM office. “We expect meeting dual-career needs
will be integral as we recruit the future academic work force, which makes this
an issue for men as much as it is for women.”

Ohio State’s participation in this regional HERC is an
extension of the university’s federally funded pursuit of gender equity. Project
CEOS (Comprehensive Equity at Ohio State) is an ongoing program
designed to increase the representation and advancement of women in academic
science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) careers. A National Science
Foundation grant of $3.6 million funded the project’s
launch in 2008.

Ohio State’s Office of Research has since established GI
STEMM (STEM + medicine) to enhance the recruitment and retention of women
faculty members from diverse populations in STEMM disciplines.

HERC is a nationwide, nonprofit consortium of more than 600
colleges, universities, hospitals, research labs, government agencies and other
organizations. Consortium institutions, which pay a membership fee based on
their size, share a commitment to hiring the most diverse and talented faculty,
staff and executives. Membership also includes access to professional
development opportunities and discounts on employment advertising.

The national HERC organization was founded in 2000 in
California. Seventeen regional HERCs currently exist in other areas of the
country. Four consortia – including Ohio State’s home network – have just
launched or are in development.

A steering committee comprising Case Western Reserve,
Carnegie Mellon, Ohio State and West Virginia universities and The LEADER
Consortium spearheaded the development of the regional network.